The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1887-08-21
Won wifi, bs in their eyes the best of Govern

you will be In their eyes the pest Oh oo'oi"
ments."
Cluseret now proceeded to eum up the points
OF this remarkable haranRue. which 10 proba-
blv tho most effective yindication OF the Paris
Commune eyer published. II believe" he
eaid. II have convinced you that you are IN
terested in the triumph OF the Commune. But
To recur to the hmm date object OF our inter-
view. 60 long a. Paris holds out against YER
sailles-and shall hold out long time-Jou
will never touch a cent OF the st1puiateo IN
demnty. unless tho Commune pays you. Inc
Commune wants to pay you, and can pay you.
Then Gen. Cluseret ran over q list OF negotiable
securities amounting to s70.OOO,OOo. wh'ch
could be forthwith transferred. and he onereo
to provide for the remaining s3oOOO'OOo oy A.
lotting part Of the municipal receipts to the
purpose. He said nothing about the Bank OF
Franco. which It Ia important to remember.
wa. not molested by the authorities OF the
Commune. and which actually went on paying
the versaillist troops who were attacking It's
protectors.
To all this array OF fact and argument the
envoy Of Prince Bismarck returned curt but
pertinent roply What you say" said hoi-
stein. is very impressive. II you can mako IL
good but We know that the defence OF Paris
rests upon q single head. and that head may
disappear" He meant, OF course. the head OF
Cluseret.
1T Is true.r answered Cluseret. they may
assassinate mo, but l do not exactly see who
would gain by 1t. Fifteen days afterward YER
sailles would enter. and Paris would pass
through storm Of fire and blood M. Theirs
would triumph. but the bour0eoisie would waste
itself In impotent rage and drop In Its turn,
exhausted and blood despatched. into the pit
dug by popular rancor. Paris would remain
q boiling crater Of evil passions. necessarily
eruptive. q redoubtable volcano from which
every one instinctively would fly. Believe me,
sir, It is impossible to live In Paris with the
working class exaspei ated."
Baron Holstein ex planned his meaning moro
clearly. and conveyed q warning OF which
Cluseret. although he knew 1t not, had need.
That Is not tho sort OF danger to which l
look forward In your case. Therei is no example
from the remotest timos OF the military chel
OF an insurrection not succumbing under the
blows of the people. You will be the victim OF
faction" They would never dare exclaimed
Cluseret 1T would be the ruin Of the Com
mune for. unluckily. there IL nobody to re-
place me-" There Cluseret was mis-
taken. 1t was not long before his fol-
low Communists arrested him, and thereby
DESTROYED themselves Only tho General made
a mistake Of four days In his estimate OF the
audiences with which collapse would come.
He thought It would take place In fifteen days
after his arrest; as q matter OF fact. 1t came In
nineteen. He had organized the machinery
better than no himself supposed.
Concluding his review Of the situation, Cluse-
ret declared himself the master Of 1t, from
military point OF view. You have not failed"
he said to Holstein, ITO observe with rs much
amaEement as satisfaction that there arc no
longer any soldiers in France Not one OF you
l. \ HrDr Eron
Do you know with how many mer1 am hold
ing Neuilly against the whole OF one OF their
army corps? Twelve hundred men. And
am 30 undisturbed about the result that give
1t no attention. I regret the powder that
waste on them for II my own men. on their
part. were Of the abre OF their sires 1t would
be with the horsewhip that the Commune OF
Paris would clear Versailles. That is the net
result OF twenty years Of empire" Yes" re-
piled Holstein. but in ten years this will have
changed; so Germany expects. But. to come
to business. now that you have set forth your
offer. what do you want in exchangep' First
Of ALL" said Cluseret. that you will not suffer
Paris to be starved out. Starvation in Paris is
a synonyme Of pillaee, murder incendiarism,
and every horror conceivable. We should be
| the first Victims but mankind would gain
nothing by that The second point Is. remain
neutral in your forts. and compel your neutral
ity to be respected by our opponents rs we shall
| respect it." The third demand. that the Ger
mans should sell to the Commune, whose SOL
diers wore poorly armed, a quantity OF their
| captured Chassepot guns WAS at once rejected;
| but Cluseret went back to Paris with the con-
| viction. justified by the event. that the Ger
| mans would maintain a genuine neutrality
and interpose no obstacle to the victualling OF
! Paris
| We have preferred to preface our extracts
| from this strangely interesting book with a de-
| tailed account OF this interview. because no.
where else have we found the purpose and pro-
| gramme OF the Commune clearly and au-
thoritatively defined. On another occasion We
shall note other striking incidents Of the siege,
and reproduce some OF the authors portraits
Of men like Delescluze. Rossel Dombrowski.
Rigault, who filled 80 large place in the eyes
of the Parisians for sixty memorable days.
!